Tesla Model Y gets 'self-driving' upgrade in China amid fierce competition from BYD

In China, the Model Y now comes with the most advanced set of Tesla’s autonomous features, per CNBC.Pool/Getty Images

Tesla is upgrading its Model Y in China.
The Model Y now comes with Hardware 4.0, CNBC reported.
The move comes amid heightened competition for Tesla in China.

Tesla is giving its Model Y an upgrade in China.

The Model Y will now come with Hardware 4.0 — a set of sensors, cameras, and an onboard computer that assist its Full Self-Driving (Beta) function, the EV company said in a post on WeChat, CNBC reported.

The upgrade, which is reportedly free of charge when local buyers purchase the EVs, will see Tesla’s most advanced hardware for autonomous features come to the Model Y. The company has already introduced it in its Model S and Model X cars in some markets.

Tesla is also launching red, gray, and silver color options in China for the Model Y, which is one of the company’s most popular products.

The moves come amid heightened competition for Tesla in China.

Chinese EV company BYD overtook Tesla as the world’s biggest EV maker last year, surpassing Musk’s company’s fourth-quarter sales.

China is an important market for all EV companies, with the nation accounting for 59% of global sales in 2022, according to a report from the World Economic Forum.

The market is especially important for Tesla as the company opened a gigafactory in Shanghai in 2019.

While the competition between Tesla and BYD has ramped up, Musk has seemingly attempted to distance his company from its Chinese counterpart.

In response to an X, formerly Twitter, discussion comparing Tesla with BYD in January, Musk wrote: “Tesla is an AI/robotics company that appears to many to be a car company.”

Representatives for Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider, made outside of normal working hours.